Bay Staters outspend Rhode Islanders at Twin River casino

Monday

Jul 15, 2013 at 6:00 AM

By Susan Spencer, TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

Massachusetts visitors continued to out-visit and out-spend Rhode Islanders at Twin River Resort casino in 2012, according to a study released Sunday by the Center for Policy Analysis at University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth. And they made up nearly a third of visitors to Connecticut's Foxwoods Resort.

If the state Gaming Commission awards a casino license to applicants in Southern or Central Massachusetts, it could take a slice out of its neighbors' revenue.

The commission on Thursday approved the suitability of applicant Mass Gaming & Entertainment, a subsidiary of Rush Street Gaming, which wants to develop a $200 million slots parlor in Millbury, and Cordish Co.'s PPE Casino Resorts MA, with plans for a Leominster slot parlor.

Destination resort casinos have been proposed by Foxwoods in Milford, by Mohegan Sun in Palmer, MGM in Springfield and Hard Rock International in West Springfield.

According to "New England Casino Gaming Update, 2013," produced under the direction of political scientist Clyde W. Barrow, Massachusetts residents accounted for 51 percent of all visits to Twin River, in Lincoln, R.I., and spent approximately $271 million on gaming, food, beverage and other entertainment last year.

Counting Newport Grand Slots with Twin River, Bay Staters made nearly 2.3 million visits to Rhode Island's slot parlors and spent $295.3 million, compared to Rhode Islanders' 1.1 million visits and total spending of $269.5 million in 2012.

In 2011, Massachusetts spending at casinos added $149.5 million in tax revenues to Rhode Island state government.

Mr. Barrow said in the news release, "Despite being located in Rhode Island, Twin River is now more than ever dependent on spending by Bay Staters. Its success in attracting Massachusetts residents will prove to be a double-edged sword."

Overall, Massachusetts residents spent approximately $853 million in 2012 at New England's four casinos in Connecticut and Maine and its two slot parlors in Rhode Island, according to the Center for Policy Analysis's news release.

Spending by Massachusetts residents, and overall revenue, continued to decline at Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun in Connecticut, however.

Bay Staters made more than 5 million visits in 2012 to the two Connecticut casinos, but spending declined 11.1 percent to $554.4 million in 2012 from $624.1 million the previous year. At its peak in 2006, they spent $876.2 million at Connecticut casinos.

Nearly a third – 32 percent – of Foxwoods visitors are from Massachusetts and 19 percent of Mohegan Sun's business comes from Massachusetts.

The report found that the Connecticut resort casinos experienced their sixth straight year-to-year decline in gross gaming revenues and total revenues. Foxwoods' revenue decreased by 9 percent, while Mohegan Sun was down 6.1 percent.

Maine's two recently opened casinos, Hollywood Casino Bangor and Oxford Casino, 40 miles north of Portland, showed positive growth in attracting out-of-state visitors. Fewer than 4 percent, however, were from Massachusetts.

While gaming used to be considered a recession-proof industry, in 2008 gaming revenues began declining on a year-to-year basis in most areas, including Nevada and New Jersey. However, new markets, including Maine, Pennsylvania, New York and Rhode Island have seen gaming revenues increase.

The researchers noted that gaming is no longer recession proof and relies more on non-gaming amenities like food and entertainment.

The New England gaming market is also being reshaped by its integration into a larger Northeaster gaming market that includes New England and the Mid-Atlantic states. New facilities are opening close to major population and income centers including Baltimore, Boston and Philadelphia, the report found.

Contact Susan Spencer at susan.spencer@telegram.com. Follow her on Twitter @SusanSpencerTG